ARC member Jubilee Court, in Sutton-in-Ashfield, has been awarded Autism Accreditation by the National Autistic Society, the UK’s leading charity for people on the autism spectrum and their families.

The award was given in recognition of the service’s good autism practice, including clear and consistent behaviour support documents and comprehensive timetables and activities. Sensory assessments and policies have been updated. Good work has been done in a short time span which is clear evidence of commitment to service users and Autism Accreditation.

The award was presented by Stephanie de Vries, the National Autistic Society’s Accreditation Advisor, at a special ceremony at the service on January 4th 2017.

Autism Accreditation is an autism-specific quality assurance programme. It was set up in 1992 to improve the support available to autistic people in organisations throughout the UK and across the world, including local authorities, NHS trusts, education authorities, local autism societies and private companies. To gain accreditation, organisations have to meet a standard of excellence and follow a framework for continuous self-examination and development. Over 500 organisations are now accredited.

Stephanie, from the National Autistic Society, said: “I am delighted that you achieved this award after all the hard work that you have done. Jubilee Court should be exceptionally proud of their achievement. The National Autistic Society’s Autism Accreditation programme was launched over 20 years ago and sets extremely high standards, which the service has worked incredibly hard to meet”.

“Being autistic means you feel, hear and see things in a different, often more intense, way to others and may struggle in certain social situations. More than 1 in 100 people are on the autism spectrum and it will affect each one of them slightly differently – some go onto successful careers while others need intensive support to go about their daily lives”.

“Autism Accreditation highlights good autism practice and we are very pleased to be here to celebrate Jubilee Courts’ achievement. It is a great thing in itself and, we believe, will inspire other organisations and services to improve the way they support autistic people.”